For most teams in the National Football League (NFL), training camp is uneventful, with the supermajority of starters already decided, and teams fine-tuning the offense, defense, and special teams before the start of the season. Winning or losing is far from important, and the primary goal for all teams is to get to the start of the season without any injuries. Unfortunately for the New York Jets, a bizarre locker room incident has severely impacted their season, as third-year quarterback Geno Smith will be out with a broken jaw for 6-10 weeks after what Jets head coach Todd Bowles described as a “sucker punch”’
It is being reported that Geno Smith owed linebacker IK Enemkpali $600, a debt that the signal caller acknowledged at the start of camp. But the relatively unknown second-year player apparently had enough, and slugged Smith in an incident that has likely signaled the end of his NFL career, as he was immediately cut by the Jets and it is highly doubtful that any team in the league would take a chance on a temperamental, marginal talent with a history of questionable behavior. His actions over $600 may have cost him the NFL minimum salary of about $500,000.
So with Geno, who posted a photo on Instagram saying, “Ill be back” after the injury, is out for 6-10 weeks, and Ryan Fitzpatrick is now the starting quarterback going into the season. But Geno’s injury not only puts his season in limbo, but also his Jets, and NFL career. Coach Bowles was asked about Geno, who was the presumed starter, returning to that position when he is healthy enough to play.
“That’s a conversation we’ll have to have when he comes back,” Bowles said. “If anybody is playing great, you lose your spot by injury, you lose your spot by a bunch of things. So, if he is playing great and the ship is going the right way, you don’t make a move.”
This was supposed to be Geno’s breakout year. With the addition of a legitimate #1 receiver in Brandon Marshall, he would be playing with the best set of offensive weapons of his brief, unimpressive career. But now, Smith, who is signed to Jay Z’s Roc Nation Sports, has lost absolute control of whether he gets game action. In an instant, the Jets and NFL career of Geno Smith is on its shakiest ground ever. With one punch, it may be lights out for Geno Smith as starting quarterback of the New York Jets.
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